Holy Friendship - A Biblical Response to Pain and AddictionPanelists: Roger Leonard, business advisor and social impact consultant with the Summit Companies, Bristol, TN, and President of the Holy Friendship Collaborative; Andrea Clements, PhD, Professor, Department of Psychology, East Tennessee State University, and Executive Director of the Holy Friendship Collaborative; and Becky Haas, Trauma Informed Care Administrator, Ballad Health, Johnson City, TN, and Board Member and Holy Friendship Summit Conference Coordinator for the Holy Friendship Collaborative

Several studies have argued that congregations are better at bonding internally rather than bridging social capital. The critique suggests that most congregations tend to internally orient relationship building activities within the confines of their membership to the detriment of promoting activities that increase social capital through expanding the connections within communities, regions, and common causes. While this critique ignores the substantial collaborative work done to promote issues such as racial equality and right to life, it is often the case that congregations prefer a “go it alone approach” or defer to parachurch organizations when addressing pressing social issues such as addiction, behavioral health, and homelessness. Collaborative efforts involving multiple congregations do occur but they are relatively rare and often occur within churches of the same denomination. Even more rare is collaboration between multiple congregations and community not for profits (e.g., United Way agencies), municipal departments (e.g., police, public housing) and both public and private universities.

Speaker 1: Origin of the Holy Friendship Collaborative This panel discussion will open with the story of a multi-congregation, multi-organization, multi- city collaboration that came together in Southern Appalachia to address prescription opioid and neonatal abstinence rates that are among the highest in the nation. The regional collaboration, called the Holy Friendship Collaborative, was inspired by Duke Theology, Medicine and Culture’s Reimagining Health Collaborative and demonstrates how regions can develop local multi-congregation, multi-agency collaboratives employing organic community organizing techniques with the support of university faculty, United Way staff, and local philanthropists. Speaker 2: The Church’s Response to Emotional and Physical Pain as a Way to Reduce AddictionPain and addiction often go hand in hand and the overdose death rate continues to rise. There are many efforts underway to try to stem the tide of addiction and overdose deaths, but without addressing reasons for substance misuse, efforts are likely to be unsuccessful. Sometimes reasons for using opioids begin with and may continue to primarily relate to physical pain. However, misuse and addiction are often fueled by emotional pain. Self- medication to numb psychological or emotional pain has been identified as one of the most common roots of addiction. Dealing with pain (emotional or physical) can take many years or even a lifetime. For that reason, we need not only adequate medical and psychological services, but also to develop communities and families that will serve as healing spaces for substance- dependent persons and that will safeguard against the events that may have placed the person at risk in the first place. The church is well positioned to be such a healing community.

Speaker 3: Addressing the Roots of AddictionIn the past two decades, it has been become clear that many health risk behaviors are predicted by past traumatic events or family dysfunction, and much of this risk can be tied to actually physiological changes in the individual’s developing brain. Individuals that have experienced abuse or other adversity, particularly as children, are at greater risk for becoming addicted to substances than those who have not. Although having a history of abuse or neglect increases the likelihood of addiction, having buffering relationships with compassionate others can offset that risk. Mandates in scripture, if followed, position the church to provide these buffering relationships, thereby reducing the risk for addiction.

Examples of Holy Friendship in PracticeThe panel will share examples of the idea of holy friendship in the context of reducing addiction risk.